


Remember The True King

by NervousAliceCurious



Series: Between Heaven Or Hell [7]
Category: Escape the Night (Web Series)
Genre: A Gathering Of Souls, Aftermath Of The Maze, Excalibur, Gen, Tears, The Dead King
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-21
Updated: 2019-08-21
Packaged: 2020-09-23 13:29:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,170
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20340895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NervousAliceCurious/pseuds/NervousAliceCurious
Summary: When Death comes calling, a certain Lady is prepared. For once, there is Hope in the air.





	Remember The True King

**Author's Note:**

> Here you go, guys! (After like a week, Xd)

It was _so_ tiring…

Fishing bodies out of the Wasteland, carrying them to the banks of the wide river.

King Arthur’s greatest and brightest stars.

Burnt out in their own afterglow.

Civilians would be along soon.

To gather them up…

The Lady sighed.

Many years living, and never a brutal and bloody battle such as this.

Trudging back to the corpse of the once-proud king, she slipped her small arms underneath his pits.

Lifting him was easy with the help of some handy magic.

She’d coated her palms in the stuff, pink glitter floating in the stormy breeze.

His heels left muddy trails in the ground.

Keeping a sharp eye out for that creepy old guy, the girl magically parted the waves with a pinky finger.

Black armor flashed through the trees.

He was strutting like a rooster; he really thought he’d won.

But she knew better;

Good _always_ had a way of balancing the scales.

**Always.**

*

Many years of living, and one day:

A hush, a shiver, right inside her bones.

Someone had drank her tears.

The ones she had first shed that fateful moment in time.

Planting a foot into the ethereal grass, the child launched upwards.

High into the sky, invisible wings just clipping the sun.

Hands rippling the surface of her Lake.

Climbing out, listening for the cheers of adoring public surrounding their new King.

Peeking from behind a large rock at the woman in a turquoise coat, feathers standing proudly in the night.

With a _-shhnk!_ the blade of legend returned to its place.

Who was she?

Who are you?

*

Bodies left in the dust after yet another battle.

Two souls disappeared too fast.

They weren’t hers to take.

Death would handle them.

Death would handle Merlin and the Black Knight.

She wouldn’t touch them-

Evil creatures!

Carrying the women, Violet Dress and Pin-Up Girl.

To join the ranks of the deceased by the water.

*

Crushing pain in her forehead, shoving inwards at the sides of her neck.

She felt those same tears die.

Dropping where she stood, the Lady cried.

Harsh, bitter sobs.

Long live the King…who was now dead.

**Again.**

*

Dragging her legs, the little sorceress slipped silently through the empty maze.

She would only have seconds before he returned.

Not that the Lady couldn’t handle him…

But the Collector would most definitely notice if her prized Cow suddenly went missing.

She had_ enough_ problems without that viper slithering all up in her zone-

A slight fermentation of blood.

The tiny child peeped around the pedestal.

Scattered blocks of old limestone surrounded someone.

A corpse.

Forehead bashed in, neck black with blue fingermarks.

Claw tips leaving red holes in the discolored flesh.

Another neck-snapped, but of_ course_ he had to go for the headbutt…

Monsters were always so dramatic!

Kneeling by the fallen Duchess, she waved a palm of healing light over her ghastly wounds.

Closed up, smoothed over in an ivory haze.

Coughing and spluttering, the woman’s eyes flared open!

“Wh-where-_Mat!?_”

Scrambling upright in a panic, hat askew on her crown, Colleen tried to stand, and almost flung herself into the nearby hedge in the process.

“Mat!!”

“He’s gone”.

“-WHAT!!?”

Unfazed, the all-powerful, magical being drew herself to her full height of 2 ft.

“He’s gone-

The Guardian Angel stone’s effects wore off at the end of the hour”.

“…Say what?”

Sparkles of anger filled her eyes.

“But that’s not fair, Nikita’s the one who cheated!”

“Who?”

“Nikita!!”

The fire in her tone was reminiscent of Arthur himself!

“She knocked over my Parthenon when I was almost done!

She’s the reason Alex won over me, and the reason again that I died!!”

“But you’re back now”.

“And how is that even possible!?”

Those sparkles were frustrated tears.

“We all got told that this was ‘a Final Death’ from which there was no return”.

“You were lucky”.

Reaching with a tiny finger, the Lady wiped away a single droplet.

“Look”.

“…It’s a tear. Because I am so p*d-off right now-“

“It’s not just a tear.

It’s my tear”.

“…You’re gonna have to explain yourself a little more-“

“You drank my tears.

You became the new King.

Therefore, I am obligated to keep you around here, or in Avalon”.

Either, or-

“Did you just say ‘Avalon’?”

“Yes”.

She gestured behind her.

“There is a lake here that could take you to it instantly”.

“But I don’t want to go to Avalon.

I want to go home to Erik and my baby-“

“I understand that.

However-“

She shivered, a cold and grave-chilling sensation sliding down her spine like a snake.

“…?”

“What’s wrong?”

Colleen was alert instantly.

“…Oh?”

“‘Oh’?”

The Lady looked toward the path she had come, wondering?

“…”

The Duchess-turned-King climbed to her feet.

“What’s out there?

What’s got you so worried?”

She stood there, muscles tensing to fight!

“…Nothing…”

“‘Nothing’ doesn’t sound like a faceless goon sneaking up behind us”.

“…Death is here”.

“Death is what!?”

“…Let’s go”.

“Go!?”

She was very clearly gobsmacked.

“Why would we want to go visit Death when he could very well decide to throw me in Hell upon the meeting of our eyes!?”

“Because he’s an old friend”.

*

On the way to the house, the Lady stopped.

Colleen almost ran her over!

“Oh no, are you okay-“

She spun on her heel and promptly tromped into the trees.

“Guess you are”, she murmured softly.

Finding her crouching in front of the big rock that she’d once pulled Excalibur from, she just had to ask:

“What are you doing?”

“…We need it”.

“The sword?”

“Mmhm”.

“Why would we need that?”

“I don’t need it”.

“-Er, honey, you just said-“

“_You_ need it”.

*

Although a smidge confused by all of this, the Duchess ended up doing as she said.

Firmly grasping the hilt of the shining blade, she didn’t have to strain;

It simply slid free of its own volition.

“Why do I need this if I’m dead?”

Brushing the bloodied grass stains from her knees, the Lady stood up.

“…To the house now”.

Colleen stared at her for a good fifteen seconds.

“Okay?”

*

Tana and Gabbie were more than a little shocked to see her walk through the door with a miniature kiddo on her arm.

“Colleen!?”

“What happened?”

The latter pointed to her big, trucking sword!!

“Is that-!?”

“Yeah, this is Excalibur”.

Lifting it from her makeshift scabbard with ease, she held it up to the light.

The resulting supernova was so bright that everyone except the Lady and Death had to shield their eyes.

“Yeah, you’re the true King alright…” Gabbie winced.

“Um, excuse me, but why are we all gathered here?”

Tana was blinking excessively as the heat from the blaze caused her mascara to run.

“We saved Mortimer, can’t we just go home now?”

“Not quite”.

Wiggling down to the floor, the child-like figure moved to meet Death in the middle.

“You see, if I'm right about why you're here, D., one of you may end up coming back from the Dead”.

**Author's Note:**

> Now I'm off to go pray for Rosanna some more. Wish me luck!!


End file.
